Rise in extreme wildfires linked directly to emissions from oil companies in new study

As fires blaze in Alber‐ ta, Saskatchewan and B.C., new research has drawn a direct and measurable link between carbon emissions traced back to the world's major fossil fuel producers and the increase in ex‐ treme wildfires across western Canada and the United States.

The peer-reviewed study, published last week in the journal Environmental Re‐ search Letters, found that 37 per cent of the total burned forest area in Western Canada and the United States be‐ tween 1986-2021 can be traced back to 88 major fossil fuel producers and cement manufacturers.

"What we found is that the emissions from these compa‐ nies have dramatically in‐ creased wildfire activity," said Carly Phillips, co-author on the study and a researcher at the Science Hub for Climate Litigation at the Union of Con‐ cerned Scientists.

The findings build on pre‐ vious studies that have quan‐ tified the contribution of those same 88 companies to the increase in global temper‐ atures, and others that have shown how a climate-driven "vapour pressure deficit" (VPD) — a measure of the at‐ mosphere's drying power — has contributed to the in‐ creased area of forest burned in Western Canada and the U.S.

Using modelling data, re‐ searchers were able to deter‐ mine that emissions traced back to those 88 companies resulted in an additional 80,000 kilometres squared be‐ ing burned. That's an area larger than the size of Ireland.

Energy industry re‐ sponds to research

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) responded to the study in an email to CBC News.

"While our view may differ from the group who pro‐ duced the study, what we can agree on is the need for con‐ tinued work towards driving down greenhouse gas emis‐ sions," said CAPP spokesper‐ son Jay Averill.

"Canada's oil and natural gas industry is one of the largest investors in emissions reduction innovation in the country," Averill said, citing carbon capture and electrifi‐ cation programs.

Canadian companies have a role to play in reducing glob‐ al carbon emissions by ex‐ porting more natural gas to countries who are relying on coal to power their economies, Averill added.

Jatan Buch, a research sci‐ entist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Colum‐ bia University, said in an email the research provides "strong evidence" of the impact of emissions traced back to spe‐ cific fossil fuel companies.

Buch, who was not in‐ volved in the study, added that while research shows VPD is a leading driver in how far a wildfire spreads, other factors are also at play, includ‐ ing the precipitation and snowpack conditions early in the season, and the practices of prescribed burning and fire suppression.

WATCH | Why wildfire seasons are getting stronger and longer: Growing field of study The research is part of a growing field of study known as attribution science, which attempts to measure how cli‐ mate change directly affected recent extreme weather events.

Jennifer Baltzer, an associ‐ ate professor in the depart‐ ment of biology at Wilfrid Lau‐ rier University in Ontario, said it's becoming more common to see scientists make those connections.

"Last year, there were a number of studies that direct‐ ly attributed the increase in emissions and associated cli‐ mate warming with the mas‐ sive heat waves that hit Eu‐ rope," said Baltzer, the Cana‐ da Research Chair in Forests and Global Change.

"I think we're increasingly seeing scientists make stronger statements, which we need to be doing —stronger statements about the fact that, yes, these changes in climate are hu‐ man-caused and they are dri‐ ving these massive catastro‐ phes that we're seeing around the world."

Baltzer, who was also not involved in the study, said the findings aren't surprising, giv‐ en previous research.

But she said the data helps draw links between previous research and the emissions from the world's largest fossil fuel companies. "It's really im‐ portant to demonstrate those links."

'The piece'

Phillips said drawing those links was part of her motiva‐ tion, especially given that re‐ cent research and investiga‐ tions have found oil compa‐ nies knew about the threat of climate change decades ago but downplayed the dangers.

"Part of what this study does is show the linkages be‐ tween these companies, their emissions and climate im‐ pacts, which will hopefully al‐ low them to be held account‐ able for their fair share of the costs associated with wild‐ accountability

fire," she said.

"I think the accountability piece for fossil fuel companies is really important and part of what makes this research unique. We know that histori‐ cally industries have been held accountable for the risks of their products, whether it be tobacco or asbestos. And a big part of holding those com‐ panies accountable was re‐ search showing the linkages between their product and the impact."

Christina

Noel,

aspokesperson for the Ameri‐ can Petroleum Institute, said in a statement: "The clear agenda of this group aside, America's oil and natur‐ al gas industry is focused on delivering affordable, reliable energy while reducing emis‐ sions."